When you buy a house, you buy all its current and future problems. In legal terms, problems with a property are called “latent defects,” and the home’s seller is legally required to disclose these to any potential buyer. And if the seller isn’t forthcoming about stuff like that, you rely on a professional home inspector to catch problems on your behalf—except home inspections aren’t exactly thorough.
This inspires some unscrupulous homeowners to hide problems with their property in the hope that you’ll buy it and make them your problems. One of the most common problem sellers try to hide is a waterlogged basement—it’s estimated that 98% of basements in this country will flood at some point. Water intrusion issues in a basement can be expensive to fix and aren’t always effective, so it’s not unheard of for a homeowner to slap a quick renovation on a basement to hide water damage and signs of flooding, hoping it lasts long enough to get the house sold. An inspector can miss this because they can’t look behind the drywall or under the floor—but there are signs you can look for that can tip you off that this finished basement is hiding serious problems.
Disclosures
It’s important to be able to spot a quickie renovation hiding a water-damaged basement because it can be difficult to hold the previous owners responsible. While they’re required to disclose problems like flooding and water damage in the basement, you’ll have to prove they knew about the problem and took steps to deceive you, which can be difficult. Even if you amass a lot of evidence of an existing problem, proving the previous homeowners knowingly deceived you is an uphill battle.
You might win a lawsuit, especially if it’s obvious that they covered up water damage. But it’s not going to be cheap, and it’s not going to be fast. It’s a lot better for you to spot the signs of a water damage cover-up before you buy.
Signs of a cover-up
Even if you have a home inspector looking at a home you’re considering buying, you should pay close attention to the basement and look for some of the signs of a hasty cover-up remodel:
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The sore thumb. Is the basement the only part of the house that’s been recently remodeled? If the kitchen and bathrooms are old but the basement is brand new, that’s an odd decision (kitchens and bathrooms are by far the most commonly renovated rooms in the house).
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The partial. Is only part of the basement renovated or remodeled? If only some of the walls or floors have been finished off, or if there’s brand-new flooring but everything else is still stuck in a prior decade, it’s worth wondering why—it’s possible these were the areas affected by water damage, and this was a hack job to hide it.
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The mismatch. Look at the paint closely. Can you see areas that look a little different—a different sheen, or slightly off-color? That might indicate a rush job to hide water stains. Another aspect of this is the quality of the materials: Is the upstairs of the house remodeled with top-tier, expensive materials, but the basement looks like they shopped a clearance sale at a hardware store? That might indicate a second renovation was needed to hide a disaster.
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The ripple. Is the floor uneven? Are the walls bulging? Freshly hung drywall and a new laminate floor might look great at a glance, but get up close—and use a level or straight edge to make sure there isn’t bowing on the walls or rippling under the flooring.
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The rusty nail. Is everything fresh and new down there but all the infrastructure—the pipes, ducts, and appliances like the furnace—rusty? If there’s a moisture problem down there, the rust tells the tale even if drywall and carpet hide the damage.
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That smell. It’s an obvious one, but worth reminding you: No matter how great a basement reno might look, if it smells musty or smells like mold, there’s probably something lurking under those finishes.
